Department of Environmental Conservation Regional Headquarters

Thisnew 30,000 sf, $9.5 million high-performance office building will provide anexpanded regional administrative center for the New York State Department ofEnvironmental Conservation (DEC).Thebuilding is the DEC’s first project designed under New York State’s ExecutiveOrder 111 and is projected to achieve a LEED “Gold” rating. The building makesextensive use of day lighting, direct solar gain and air stratification withautomated shading integrated with lighting controls. Long span steel trusses allow for anexpansive open workspace, flooding the main space with natural light.Inaddition, the new building is also DEC’s first building to implement its newstorm-water design regulations for New York State.The site design takes advantage of large-scale biofiltration and storm watercollection & retention as well as a hybrid of pervious and imperviousparking areas. Site planning was designed to maximize natural & plantedareas, reduce heat-islands and protect native species.Thebuilding’s modular design allows for the minimization of construction waste and cutting, therebyalso reducing overallconstruction costthrough standardization and decreasing environmental impact. In addition, construction materials thatare locally produced and make extensiveuse of recycled content were selected whenever possible. Theinterior of the building features a pressurized raised floor and modularpartition system to accommodate future changes in use patterns with flexiblepower, voice, data and HVAC distribution while eliminating most ductwork. Inaddition, working with several national office system furniture companies, anew ‘green’ work-surface was developed for use in the open office landscape. Consistingof a clear-powder coat finish over the manufacturer’s standard MDF substrate, thenew worksurface substantially reducesthe material and energy required to produce a final product This innovation in the project is now beingoffered by several manufacturers as a ‘green’ alternative.Inaddition, DOE2 computer modeling indicates that the building will have energysaving of at least 42% when compared to a code-compliant or LEED baselinebuilding and makes the project eligible for substantial NYSERDA grant funding.Theproject has been featured in Metropolis magazine for its innovation insustainable design.